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| Death Row inmates go on hunger strike |
| By Indianapolis Star |
| Published: 03/24/2004 |
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Death Row inmates are conducting a hunger strike to protest what prison rights advocates call inhumane conditions at the Westville maximum-security prison, the Indiana Department of Correction said yesterday. At least a dozen prisoners are refusing food, said Pam Pattison, agency spokeswoman. Seven of them have not eaten since March 17. Prisoner advocates claim that at least 17 inmates are participating in the hunger strike. The protest is the latest controversy at the Maximum Control Facility, which has prompted complaints since it opened in 1991. Recent complaints surfaced after 38 Death Row inmates were transferred there from the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, which is being remodeled. They claim the Westville prison is less humane and more restrictive than Death Row. Additionally, they claim they are subject to filthy conditions, including feces in the shower and mice and other pests in cells. A State Health Department inspection last year confirmed some of the complaints. The inmates won't eat until administrators move them out of the facility or make the rules less restrictive, said Steve Schutte, an attorney for the public defender's office for Indiana. |
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